The Great Happy Days Adventure:The Search for Chuck Cunningham
by tvsitcomfan
Summary: Danny discovers the painful secret the Cunninghams and friends have been keeping from each other. After a mysterious letter delivered the following day, the gang decides to go on a search for the lost Cunningham. What happened to Chuck? Will they find him in time, will he remember his family,or will the gang be too late? Read and find out!
1. Chapter 1

Fonzie was washing the tables at Arnold's when he heard footsteps behind him. Turning around, he noticed Danny had come in with his backpack in hand.

"School go okay,Danny," he asked as he sat down at his usual table. Danny shrugged his shoulders and then sat down across from Fonzie,putting his bag on the floor besides him. He looked around the room,ignoring Fonzie as he tried to get his attention.

"Can you speak a little louder."

"It's school." Fonz slammed his fist on the table left and pointed at his son.

"I knew it! Now, tell me. What is bothering you? Someone bullying you? Do they know who your father is?" Fonz standed up in defense.

"Calm down,dad. It's not like that at all." Fonz paused to tbink and then snapped his fingers.

"I get it,you need a Halloween costume!" Just then, a few girls came up behind him. Danny chuckled.

"No,dad." The Fonz kissed them and turned back to his son.

"Well,then,I can't help if you don't tell me." Danny's stomach turned as he tried to continue.

"These kids at school were telling me about this scary story about someone who used to live here. Someone who never returned." The Fonz laughed and sat back down with his son.

"Danny,people who mess with the Fonz never dare to return here."

"It's not like that though," he continued.

"Don't tell me who it is...it's Mork! I knew it!" The Fonz smiled.

"He was a strange fellow. He was an interesting freak of nature,if I do say so,myself." Danny shook his head.

"What kind of name is that?" The Fonz grinned.

"I'll save that story for another time. Now,let me see. Was it Pinky,the Malacchi brothers, Arnold..."Danny rolled his eyes and then covered them with his hands,his voice sounding muffled when he answered him.

"What did you say," the Fonz said in disbelief.

"It's Chuck." Fonz got up and started pacing the floor.

"I heard you the first time." Danny gasped.

"I wish I had answers for you.I really do."

"What happened? I heard he left one day and never returned. Someone said he died mysteriously." Danny paused.

"He was uncle Richie's older brother,wasn't he? Then why was he never mentioned?" Fonz stood up abruptly.

"Whatever they said, it's not true. Do you hear me?" He replied,his voice becoming choked up. He got up and stormed into the bathroom,leaving Danny alone.


	2. Chapter 2

"Mr. And Mrs. C., he knows," Fonz exclaimed as he stormed into the house the next morning.

"Who knows what,Fonzie," Mr. Cunningham asked as he helped his wife put away groceries.

"Danny knows about Chuck." Howard sighed and turned to Fonz.

"Fonz,nobody knows what has happened to Chuck. Not even I."

"You know what I mean,Mr. C," Fonz panicked. Just then, there was a knock at the door. Mr. Cunningham opened the door to discover the mail man in front of him. Retrieving the letters,he skimmed through them to discover a letter by an unknown address. He paused and slowly opened the envelope. His face turned a shade of white.

"Howard, is everything alright,"Marion replied,concerned. He handed the letter over to Fonz to read it aloud.

"To whom it may concern,

We know the whereabouts of your son,Charles. Disclosed is four train tickets to New York city and the address of the hotel you will be staying at. Come as soon as possible

-TBD"

Fonz paused.

"Howard,who is TBD?"

"I don't know,Marion. Does it say anything else,Fonzie?" He shook his head slowly and grabbed his coat.

"No,it doesn't. I do know one thing,though. I know that I need to find him. I promised red if he needed something,I'd always be there for him. Richie is busy,so I will find ran in front of Fonz.

"Stop, don't leave." Fonz was in shock. Howard grabbed Marion and his coat.

"We're coming with you."

"What about Danny,Howard?"

"Don't worry,Marion. Roger will watch him." Fonz laughed,his face grew serious for a second.

"Mr.C,are you nutso?" Howard put his hand on the Fonz's shoulder and guided him out the door.

The three of them got to the train station. Waiting to get on the train, they noticed Potsie approaching them.

"Hey,guys! Sorry,I'm late!" Marion went to Potsie and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Nice to see you,Warren."

"Now,tell me again, who is this letter from?"

"We don't know. We are going to find out," Fonz started.

Howard sighed and put his arm around Marion.

"If only we knew it would have been this long before we would have seen him again." Marion burried her face in his coat.

"Don't worry,Mrs. C., we'll find out what happened to Chuck,"Potsie said as he zipped up his coat. The train quickly approached the group.

The weather had seemed to drop in the past hour. The group was huddled close together,afraid to part with the chance of getting lost in the big crowd. All they had was the clothes on their back and hope in their hearts. This was just the beginning.


	3. Chapter 3

"Mr. C.,are you sure Chuck will be in New York City?"

"Potsie,I'm not sure of anything anymore. All I know was that the night my son disappeared,everything changed. I never thought I would stop seeing the day he came inside dribbling a basketball with one hand and a brownie in the other."

"Mr. C., what else did Chuck do besides that?" Howard paused.

"You've got a point there,Potsie. Then again, you didn't see him as much as me. He was away at school most of the time you came to visit."

Howard turned to Marion and smiled.

"Remember Chuck's first day of high school?" She patted her husband on the back and leaned on his shoulder.

"He was so nervous. He didn't want me to make him lunch and he wanted to walk to take the bus instead of walking to school. He came home that day upset because someone stole his lunch."

"I thought he bought the school lunch. Who likes school lunch," Postie asked confused.

"He didn't bring his own. Some kid wanted to start a fight and Chuck didn't want any part of it. So,the kid threw Chuck's lunch on him."

"What did he do after that," Fonz replied as he stood up for a second.

"Nothing. Not until the next day. He dumped a carton of milk on the boy's head." Mr. C. grinned.

"In some ways,Fonzie,he reminded me of you." Fonts squinted his eyes.

"Me? Why me?"

"Because no matter what happened,he kept moving forward and tried to stay positive. He would treat everyone with respect no matter what kind of person they were."

Fonzie started to feel a little misty. He then turned and looked out the window. He could see the empire state building off in the distance and posters of the newest musicals displayed on every corner. He had never been to New York before. The city was bigger than he imagined,making him wonder if finding Chuck would be a lot harder than they thought. He turned to his friends as they exited the train. Looking around, the group noticed people holding up signs. Potsie noticed a figure in a trench coat lurking in the back of the crowd suspiciously,watching every move they made.

"This fella going to a Halloween party or something," Fonz joked. Howard shook his head and moved closer to the figure,the rest of the group tagged along.

"Excuse me,sir. May I help you?" The figure nodded its head and guided the group to the exit of the train station.

"We are here in regards to my son,Charles 'Chuck' Cunningham. Do you have any idea where we can find him or if you know any other information." The figure nodded its head slowly.

Howard rolled his eyes.

"For a start, can you speak English and do you have a name and face. It feels like I am talking to a ghost." The figure nodded his head once again. Fonts had enough of the game this character was playing. He moved closer to the coat and took off the hood which covered the face that was hiding. Just then,Mrs. C. fainted. Luckily, Mr. C. was just in time to catch her.


	4. Chapter 4

"Haha,I've still got it!"

"Malph,what did you do that for," Fonz asked as he punched his friend in the shoulder.

"Ralph,dear,how are you," Mrs. C asked as she gave him a hug.

"How are ya,buddy?" Mr. C pushed everyone out of the way.

"Ralph, there must better be a good explanation why you are here. Tell me everything you know. Every detail."

"What if I were to tell you where Chuck is." The group's faces lit up with excitement.

"And what if I were to tell you I want you to tell us where he is," Howard replied.

"And what if I were to tell you that he may not remember you." Mr. C. Shook his head in denial.

"What if I were to tell you that you were crazy and that you need your head examined,Malph," Fonz replied angrily. Just then, Ralph's cheerful grin disappeared.

"What if I were to tell you that Chuck has amnesia." Everyone grew silent.

"For how long,I don't know. I didn't want to put my name in the letter because I wasn't sure if you all would take this seriously."

"You sure got that right," Potsie laughed as he scratched his head.

"If you know where he is, why didn't you tell us," Potsie continued.

"I don't know where he is at this moment. I do know one thing though. And that is that he goes by the name of Thomas B Douglas."

"Where did he get that name? Howard, we aren't related to anyone by the last name of Douglas."

"It's like those people who are a ghost writer,Mrs. C.. They don't want others recognizing them. In this case, he doesn't even recognize himself,never mind his whole family."

"Are you telling me that my son is a writer?" Ralph nodded his head nervously.

"For a newspaper."

"Then,how did you discover his whereabouts?"

"It was by accident,honest. I happened to be in the city on business when I noticed him walking around one day."

"Don't tell me you followed him everywhere. Only a creep would do something like that," Potsie added. Ralph laughed.

"It was the only way. Besides, I only followed him to the building where he works. They wouldn't let me go inside."

"That's okay,Ralph, we appreciate your effort,"Mrs. C encouraged him.

"Well,then where is he?" Ralph took a wrinkled up piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Fonz.

"Come with me,"Fonz declared as he grabbed Ralph by his coat and leaded him down the road.

"Why?"

"Well,why not? After all, we need some more clues. You're the one with the trench coat,Sherlock."


	5. Chapter 5

The gang ended up in a huge business building down the road. People were everywhere trying to get to important meetings. Mr. C looked at everyone and smiled nervously. He noticed a pretty burnett sitting at a desk which appeared to be a secretary in the near distance. Potsie smiled and went over to Mr. C.

"Can I be the one who talks to her,Mr. C?" Howard noticed the pretty lady smiling at Potsie and gave him a gentle push forward.

"Excuse me,miss,do you know where we could find a Ch-I mean a Thomas Douglas?" Her smile grew wider and blushed.

"Down the hall and take a right at the elevator. He is in room 115." Just as they were about to head in that direction,she stopped them.

"I'm sorry,only two people allowed in his office at a time." Howard looked at Ralph,Fonz and Potsie and bowed his head.

"Don't worry,Mr. C,we will be alright here,"Potsie said. As the two walked away,Fonz patted his friend on the back.

"I'll keep Malph busy. Go have a few minutes of fun." Potsie inched closer to the desk,the secretary writing a few notes in her pad. He cleared his throat,yet she didn't answer. He repeated the gesture a second time,gaining her attention.

"So,you like working here?"

"Yes,I do. Meet nice people every day. I even meet some strange people as well." She leaned her head to the left to see Ralph wearing huge glasses and goofing around. Constrained his shirt and pulled him in a corner.

"Don't mind my friend. They aren't that strange,I promise!" She laughed as she gazed into his eyes dreamily.

"That was so nice of you to come with your parents today. If you don't mind me asking, why are you all here?"

"Well,to be honest,they aren't my parents. They're my friend's parents." She tilted her head and finished writing a note she had in front of her.

"My friend couldn't be here. We are trying to find his brother."

"He has a brother? Thomas never mentioned his family before. He always seemed rather distant. I mentioned his family before and he said that they're nice people,but that is all." Potsie leaned on the desk and played around with her contaiiner of pencils.

"I see." Potsie turned to Ralph and Fonz and shrugged his shoulders.

Howard and Marion waited patiently outside of the office,waiting for the meeting to finish up. Marion sighed and looked at Howard.

"I'm scared,Howard. What if he is a completely different person than we remember? I mean,I heard amnesia can do that to a person. "

"Don't worry,honey. Everything will be alright. It will take used to, but it will be alright." Just then, the door slowly opened. The Cunninghams rose from their seats and proceeded to open it more. Two people exited the room while one had remained:Chuck.

"Come in and shut the door,please." The Cunningham's slowly shut the door and stood at Chuck's desk. He twirled around in his chair and sighed.

"What can I do for you fine people today?" Mrs. Cunningham was about to say something when Howard stopped her.

"We are here concerning you,son." Chuck looked at Mr. C as if he had two heads.

"Me? Why me? I don't have time to play games. I have work to be done."

"Chuck,we..."

"Excuse me,but I don't have the slightest idea who you are talking about. Who is this 'Chuck' you are referring to,sir?" Howard sighed, trying with all the strength inside him to not shed a tear. He looked at Marion and held her hand.

"I don't think I know anymore."


	6. Chapter 6

"How long will you be in the area..."

"Potsie-" Ralph blurted out. Postie punched his friend in the shoulder. The woman laughed and leaned in closer to him.

"My friends call me Potsie. My real name is Warren." The woman smiled and put out her hand.

"Nice to meet you,Warren. My friends call me Hannah but my real name is Hannah." He slowly took her hand and shook it. His eyes were glued to hers,just like his hand was to hers. Just then, the door opened behind them. It was Mr. And Mrs. Cunningham. Chuck was right besides them.

"What's going on,Mr. C," Fonzie asked.

"We're going home."

"Home? But we just got here,Mr. C! Besides, I have never been to New York before!"

"Do I have to remind you why we came here in the first place?" Postie was silent. He looked at Hannah and shrugged his shoulders. She got up and joined the group.

"Hey,listen,I have been due for a vacation anyways. Maybe if you all don't mind, I can go with you. It might help Tom-I mean Chuck to transition from his newer self to who he really is." Howard chuckled and nodded his head.

"Alright, pack up your things and meet us at the airport for three thirty." Postie beamed with excitement and gave Howard a huge hug. Howard rolled his eyes and patted Potsie on the back.

The flight left right on time. Ralph sat next to Fonzie,falling asleep on his shoulder halfway through the three Cunningham's sat behind them and Potsie and Hannah sat behind them.

Potsie noticed Hannah pull a book from her bag.

"This is his new book. It is titled 'Lost in the City'. It is a man who moves to the city a new life for himself in the city after his parents died only to realize that they weren't his real parents. His birth parents lived in the city but he doesn't know their names at all." Potsie shook his head.

"Boy,does that sound familiar."

"When you told me about them being his family,I had no doubt in your mind that they were him. Besides, when I saw him, I noticed right away that he looks like he could be related to those two." Potsie looked around him and noticed people were falling asleep.

"You have any family?" Hannah looked out the plane window.

"I did. A long time ago." She turned her head to meet Potsie's gaze.

"My mother died a few years ago and my father was abusive. I never married.. maybe it was because I was afraid to."

Potsie folded his hands on his lap and looked down.

"What about now?" She grinned sheepishly and looked at him.

"Well,I suppose I wouldn't be. I guess the right guy hasn't come along yet." Potsie grinned and put his hand on hers.

"Don't worry,he will."

A few seats in front of them, Chuck was turning his head from the view outside to his father next to him.

"I didn't remember my name so I just came up with one on my own. The writing part just came to me naturally.I've been in New York for six years now. I just have been so caught up in work that the thought of finding my family sort of been put on the back burner for now. Not that I didn't want to find you. I just wasn't ready,I guess." Howard patted his son on the back.

"Don't worry,son. We will help you through this,don't you worry." Chuck smiled,looked around and then whispered in his father's ear.

"I have any siblings at all?"


	7. Chapter 7

The gang pulled up to the driveway of the Cunningham's got in their own cars and departed the house. Chuck slowly got out of the car and went in the front door. He searched the living room and kitchen.

"I wish I could remember,I really do." Howard put a hand on his shoulder.

"We have remodeled the house a little since you left." Chuck ran up the stairs and back down again. Just then the doorbell rang. Howard looked at Chuck and then the door. Chuck slowly opened the door. Right before his siblings.

"Richie,Joanie!" Chuck exclaimed. Howard and Marion looked at each other in disbelief.

"We missed ya big brother," Joanie exclaimed. Richie took his brother by the arm and lead him to the back yard. It was then he noticed the old basketball hoop. A tear went down his face. Richie threw him the ball and smiled. It was then Chuck knew where he belonged.

"Got a lot of catching up to do," Chuck said.

"I recall the game was 5-7." Chuck frowned.

"I apologize for not always being there for you. I missed your graduations,your wedding...your kids being born. I always wanted to be an uncle."

"I understand. What matters is that you are here now."

"I didn't know who I was or where I came was awful! I was in a hospital with so many strangers and that didn't know who I was either. I must have lost my wallet along the way." Richie put his hand on his brother's shoulder and ran upstairs to his old bedroom,Chuck following behind him. He opened a drawer to reveal an old wallet.

"We got this in the mail. We were told you were missing. After a while many people assumed you had died. I had a feeling deep inside that this day might come. I couldn't let it go." Richie wiped a tear from his eye.

"I love you,Chuck!"

"I love you too." The brothers exchanged hugs. In the distance,they could hear their mother.

"Who wants some brownies?" Chuck smiled. He was home.


End file.
